New wind farm in service off the British coast

The Dudgeon wind farm is part of the greening portfolio of Norwegian energy company Statoil.

The Dudgeon wind farm off the British coast was connected to the grid on Wednesday, operator Statoil said. Photo courtesy of Jan Arne Wold-Woldcam/Statoil.

Nov. 22 (UPI) -- Norwegian energy company Statoil said Wednesday its Dudgeon wind farm off the British coast is now feeding the grid from its 67 wind turbines.

The Dudgeon wind farm is about 25 miles off the coast of Norfolk. Its turbines, with a combined capacity of 402 megawatts, can meet the energy demands of around 410,000 average households at its peak. The Norwegian company, one of the main energy suppliers to the European market, said Dudgeon is part of its efforts to add more green components to its portfolio.

"As part of our strategy to develop from an oil and gas company to a broad energy major, Statoil will grow significantly in profitable renewable energy, with an ambition to invest around $12 billion towards 2030," CEO Eldar Sætre said in a statement.

Statoil placed the last of the 67 turbines at the Dudgeon wind farm in place in October. The company said the entire facility was completed on time and below the $1.9 billion budget set when the final investment decision was made in 2014.

Statoil already counts several projects in its renewable energy portfolio. Through a memorandum of understanding signed with the Scottish government, the company aims to install a Lithium battery storage system within two years.

Working since 2012, its Sheringham Shoal is one of the largest offshore wind farms in service in the world with its capacity to provide enough power to meet the annual demands of nearly a quarter million average households.

The United Kingdom ranks second in Europe behind Germany for offshore wind energy capacity, with about 518 megawatts, before Dudgeon was connected.